This invention relates to the art of applying electrical connectors to electrical conductors, and more particularly, to improvements in a machine which applies electrical connectors to multi-conductor flat cable of the type used in electronics, particularly in the computer field.
Multi-conductor flat cable is used extensively in the electronic industry and particularly in the computer field to interconnect various system elements and components. The actual connections are made through electrical connectors secured to or terminated on the cable, which connectors usually electrically contact each conductor. Depending upon the specific application a cable can have two or more connectors secured thereto.
Each connector has two portions or halves, a cap and a body, and the conductor cable is sandwiched between the halves. Sometimes the connector is said to be "staked" to the cable. The body half includes insulation piercing tine-like contacts for engaging and electrically contacting each conductor. The cap secures the connector body to the cable and in effect sandwiches the cable between the cap and body.
Machines have been developed to apply these connectors to the cable. One such machine is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,580,340 for precisely positioning the connector on the cable and securing the connector to the cable. In that patent a pair of connector feed assemblies or magazines each delivers a connector portion to one of a pair of opposed ram-type feed devices, each of which includes tooling or a head having an interchangeable insert which defines a shelf-like recess for receiving a connector portion. The cable is positioned between the feed devices and tooling, such that when the tooling is advanced the connector body is staked to the cable, the connector cap is secured to the connector body and the connector thus secured to the cable.
Each connector section coming from a feed device falls into the recess in the tooling or head and the section is then staked to the cable. The dimensions of the insert are about the same as the dimensions of the connector portions which requires precise delivery of the connector half to the insert. Furthermore, since the recess is formed in the tooling or head, the movement of the tooling must be very accurately controlled during "staking" so as to permit the connectors to precisely engage the cable on the extension stroke of the ram. If the stroke is too short, then termination or staking is not precise or secure, and if the stroke is too long, the rams, tooling or connection portions may collide damaging the connector or making the connection defective.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a connector terminating machine which is constructed to reliably and accurately receive connector portions delivered from feed devices and stake the connectors to a multi-conductor cable.
It is another object of this invention to provide connector receiving tooling and insert which is self correcting as to the length of the stroke of the connector staking ram.
These and other objects of this invention shall become apparent from the following description and appended claims.